UNSTABLE
by Cinderfire16
Summary: Little Bella Swan has no idea who these people are or why they act so weird, but they feed her and give her things, even if they don't tell her they love her like she's seen other kids' parents do. They'll be her parents anyway. (They don't come back after her 5th birthday) 12 years later, she sees a familiar face when she goes to live with her father.


**The vampire will admit that he was in over his head. At the time, he saw a young woman trying to help a little girl clearly in need of the kind of help only he could (would) give. He had no idea things would turn out like this, but he can't say he regrets it. Whatever they were to him, it was not a mistake.**

_**THE DEAL**_

Dark blonde hair fell in small ringlets at his shoulders that bounced as he strolled down the sidewalk. His head whipped from side to side, orange eyes constantly scanning for signs of movement. He'd take anything if it would relieve his growing boredom. A potential scuffle made his head turn to the right and he watched as a small figure crept noisily onto the branch of a grand old oak that was level with a child's room. He did many terrible things under Maria's rule but messing with children (peace of mind or otherwise) was crossing the line. He was after the bastard in seconds.

"What do you think you're doing?!" He hissed in the man's ear. A whimper met his question and he realized that choking the spirit out of the man would grant too easy an out. He loosened his grip. "Well?!"

The man didn't answer.

"Considering your lack of response, you're either a thief or a pedophile. Pick one, and you better answer me this time."

The man hacked out two coughs in counter.

"Pedophile it is, my unfortunate friend. You'll be getting a taste of your own medicine soon. Or did you forget what they do to guys like you in prison?" The orange-eyed man sneered.

His captive wheezed out a protest.

"Here's what'll happen, since you're so eager to keep your life and I'm not as eager to take it. The way I see it, you have two options. You can turn yourself in or you can die on the streets. Then again, who am I kidding? Men like you never change. You'll die at some other guy's hands either way so it's no concern of mine. Police it is, buddy."

It didn't take long to deliver the now-unconscious man to the nearest station. He took a piece of paper and left a note taped to the man's shirt.

**Someone stopped me from creeping into a little girl's room. **

The whole affair lasted ten minutes and when he got back to the little girl's house, she had her window open and was outside halfway to her shoulders.

"What's a pedophile?" She asked softly.

"You'll find out when you're older, kid." A rough yet definitely female voice drifted to his ears and he whirled around to find a dark-skinned Native American girl around his age (or the age he would be if he were human) walking toward the two of them.

"Thanks for finally getting that scumbag," She murmured too low for the little girl to hear.

"You knew?"

"He's been creeping around the neighborhood. I couldn't stop him without making a scene and then the girl's mother would have gotten involved. That woman doesn't deserve to be called a mother to anyone, much less that sweet little girl. He's been watching her, vamp, and I'm glad you were here to do what I couldn't. She needed me more than she needs the wolf."

"So you're what, her guardian?"

"I guess you could say. That woman isn't doing much by her, so someone has to. Living on the streets is not a good thing for a five year old."

"I'm pretty sure I can keep the creeps away if you're that worried about the girl. I can't be around all the time but if you really need me then I'll be there. You got a name?"

"Leah Clearwater."

"Jasper Whitlock. We got a deal, wolf?"

"Sure, vamp. Deal."

"Leah?" The little girl called out. The wolf was level with the girl's window in seconds.

"Yes?"

"Where's he going?"

"He has to go back home, little one. You'll see him again someday."

* * *

_**FIRST MORNING**_

"Isabella!" A woman's shrill voice snapped the girl out of her dreamless sleep. Truthfully, she'd woken long before that. After several unsuccessful sleeping attempts, she settled for relaxing in her bed and eventually had drifted off. This happened often since Leah and Jasper, as the two introduced themselves, had stopped the creepy man from reaching her. But that wasn't her concern at the moment. Renee stomped into her room and yanked off her covers, only to find that her daughter was already dressed for school. Her bag lay at the foot of her bed, packed to the brim with school supplies.

"I tried to make breakfast but it didn't work out so well. You can use whatever we normally use but touch my party stuff and you'll regret it. Am I understood?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"What time does your bus come?" Renee asked. Bella glanced at where her alarm clock normally sat before she remembered that Renee had ripped it out of its socket one morning, having stumbled into the now-six year old girl's room with complaints of a blinding headache. She glanced at the watch Jasper gave her for her birthday. It wasn't all that much, but she'd picked it out and it was perfect.

"Half an hour, mom. Is there anything you need besides breakfast?"

"No, dear. Make breakfast and get to school. I should be back soon. I can't wait to hear all about your day."

"Okay, mom. Love you."

"Have a good day, Bella."

Her mother sauntered out of the room (and most-likely out of the house) leaving Bella to her own devices. A chime from her watch told her that she had 45 minutes to do as she pleased before school started, and she was hungry.

True to Bella's instinct, Renee had left the house. Breakfast would consist of eggs and bacon and pancakes, if what Leah said earlier was anything to go by. Her two favorite people had been around for the last year, giving her presents and teaching her how to fend for herself, like Jasper said Renee was supposed to do. They weren't always around, but when they were, she felt safe.

"Hey, kid." Jasper whispered; his breath warm on her ears. She jolted out of her thoughts and he laughed.

"Not funny," She yelped.

"Did I scare you, Ringtail?"

"No," She scowled.

"Yes, I did." He chuckled. "Leah should be here soon, so what do you want for breakfast?"

She reeled off her breakfast list like an auctioneer and if Jasper was human, he'd be completely lost.

"You have an unhealthy obsession with bacon, Ringtail."

"Do not!" She whined

"Do too." He grinned.

"Do not!"

"Do too."

"Do not!"

"Do too."

"Not!"

"Too!"

"Not!"

"Not!"

"Too!"

Bella froze, jaw dropped as she processed what just happened.

"You tricked me!" She snapped.

"Yes, Ringtail, yes I did." Jasper purred; a playful gleam in his eyes.

"What are you two whining about now?" A female's voice sliced through their argument and Bella leapt up and raced toward the sound.

"Leah!" She cried happily, content to walk with her female guardian and firing off question after question. "Jasper tricked me!" She whined once the she-wolf's patient gaze landed on her.

"I'm sure he was just having fun, kid. Did you eat?"

"Jasper made breakfast! He says I have a heathen session with bacon."

_Unhealthy obsession_, The vampire mouthed. Leah snickered.

"That you do, kid. Ready for your first day?"

"Yes!" Bella crowed, jumping out of Leah's hold and springing up from her landing on the floor. Jasper raised an eyebrow but Leah shook her head.

"You guys are weird when you do that."

"It's an adult thing. What time does the bus come?"

"Five minutes. I gotta go!" Bella yelped. Jasper and Leah followed her out of the house, and to the bus stop.

"We won't be able to stay for long, Ringtail, but if anything happens then tell your neighbors, okay? They can help you just as much as Leah or I."

"Okay," Bella grumbled. She wished her friends could stick around forever.

* * *

_**RETURN OF THE LOST**_

"Bella?"

A deep, gruff voice jolted her awake. She'd always been a light sleeper, something she'd picked up from her friends, but she had barely seen either of them since she was six.

"Hey, Ch- dad."

Charles Swan had received a phone call in the dead of night and the next morning, the little girl he'd gotten to see during the summer was on his doorstep with a suitcase full of things and a cheerful grin.

"This is gonna be great!" His daughter had proclaimed.

"I hope so," Forks' police chief muttered. He was just as glad that she was here, but didn't know the first thing about raising a normal teenage girl, and Bella was far from normal. One look told him that she held wisdom far beyond her years. Wisdom that she shouldn't have that easily told him that something had happened in Phoenix.

Now he stood before her bed, surprised to find her fully dressed and ready for school.

"Are you okay?" She asked. He nodded absently.

"Fine, kiddo. Just fine." He muttered. "There's not much in the way of breakfast-."

"I can tell, "Bella snorted. "What do you live on, doughnuts and coffee?"

"Hey, don't knock the doughnuts. They are a staple in a cop's diet."

"They are fattening at best, dad, and they're supposed to be a snack, not breakfast. I'll see if I can find stuff at the grocery store later, get us some real food."

"You don't-."

"It's okay, dad. Really. I'm used to it."

"If you say so."

He made sure to leave some money on the fridge. If she was so set on feeding him, the least he could do was supply the cash. (When he got home later he found the kitchen well-stocked and half the money still on the counter.)

Charlie insisted on driving her to school. It wasn't even that far a walk, (15 minutes at best. She'd gone much further than that before) but he insisted that she at least get a ride today in case she got lost. They pulled into the parking lot with all the other beat-up cars just as the five-minute warning bell rang.

"I can take it from here," She assured her father. The chief flashed her a concerned look, but drove off after a few heartbeats. She breathed: in, out, like Leah taught her. She could do this.

She found the office rather quickly, despite not knowing the place like she wanted to. The old secretary looked rather bored behind the desk, but she loped forward, undaunted by the dry atmosphere.

"Excuse me," She mumbled. "I'm Isabella Swan." The old secretary brightened up considerably.

"Oh, yes, the Chief's daughter. Here's everything you need to get through your first day, and this sheet," She pointed out a yellow one that faintly reminded her of a schedule. "Needs to be signed by all of your teachers and given back to me or whoever's here at the end of the day.

"Thank you," She muttered as she walked out of the office. She glanced down at the schedule. English was first and for that, she was thankful. English was easy for her to comprehend. There were so many different approaches you could take that there was no wrong answer as long as you weren't completely off-base. English would hopefully be a breeze.

Her English teacher simply nodded when she gave him the yellow paper and pointed her to a desk. Good. Hopefully all of her teachers would be like that. The last thing she needed was attention drawn to her. People still stared. They always would, Jasper reminded her once. For some reason you can never notice until they point it out.

The reading list was easy enough, considering that she'd read them all before. She loved classics.

Her next class was Government, which involved a bit of history so they spent most of the class going over things that influenced the way the US government was shaped: important court cases, wars, milestones in history that weren't really categorized but were equally important. She wracked her brain for the things that Jasper had told her about his life in the South. None of it matched what the teacher was saying, which only proved the old sayings true. History was written by the victors and the other side either assimilated or got wiped out. It happened with the Native Americans, as Leah could easily testify, and it happened with the Civil War. Jasper had told her that he didn't agree with the idea of keeping one race down, but he fought to maintain his way of life, which would be destroyed if the Union won. They had, and he hadn't really "lived" to see the end, but he didn't regret it. At least, that was what he told Bella.

* * *

**_BELLA_**

Time passed quickly after that. I didn't pay much attention in Trig because I hated the subject! Math was never my strong suit and I knew I wouldn't do all that well. I would try my best, though, and hope I could manage a B by the end of the year. Maybe I could ask Leah to help the next I saw her. She was good at math even if she didn't like it. Spanish was easily my next favorite subject. Jasper had taught Leah how to speak it so they could talk without others knowing what about. I eventually asked to learn and he agreed to teach me, although reluctantly. I learned the basics and most of what I knew was slang but I could understand a decent amount of the language and hopefully respond in kind.

After that was lunch, and most of the people I'd met in earlier classes sat together. Angela, Eric, Mike, and Tyler introduced me to the rest of their friends, and invited me to sit with them. I knew that I wouldn't like Lauren from the start. She was too… fake? Superficial, Jasper would say. Leah would say that the girl needs a reality check. It was not the first time that I desperately wished that one of them were here…

I scanned the cafeteria more to see what went on than to look for trouble, as Leah insisted I not do. My eyes landed on five beautiful people who sat at a table further from the rest than the others. Three boys and two girls who didn't say much, didn't seem all that interested in the going-ons of their fellow students, who minded their own business, unlike the rest of the town.

Something curled around my heart and squeezed as a painfully familiar face caught my eyes.

He's been here all this time…

"Are you okay?" Angela asked.

"I think I know one of them," I told her, gesturing to the table I pointed out earlier.

"Who, the Cullens?"

"I guess… I'm going to find out."

I got up and dumped my tray, having finished the pizza and apple juice I could almost call lunch. From there, I walked over to their table and stopped in front of the table.

"Can I sit with you guys?" I asked softly, knowing that my voice would carry over. Jasper shifted to one side, allowing just enough space for me to squeeze between him and the bronze-haired boy. I sat down and paced my head against the cool table in the space my arms made. Jasper rested his head on folded hands and faced me.

"Welcome back." He offered.

"Good to be back." I muttered.

"What happened to your mother, kid?"

"Which one?" I groused. He gave me a look.

"Renee's fine. She and Phil needed time to be on their own. I figured that I'm old enough to do what I want."

"You've got a year to go before that can happen."

"Renee could care less no matter what she says."

"She means well, kid. Just misguided."

"Is that your excuse for her or for you?"

"We'll talk about that when there aren't so many people around."

"Do you still keep up with Mom?" He rolled his eyes but nodded all the same.

"Occasionally, when I get bored."

"Bored," I snorted. "So not often."

"I can give you her number."

"I'd like that." I mumbled. I had questions that only they could answer.

The bell rang for the next class and we went our separate ways… for now.

I ended up having the youngest of Jasper's family, who I dubbed Copper for his hair, in my Biology class. He ignored me completely and I was just fine with that. I had no reason to talk to him anyhow.

_**JASPER**_

To be quite honest, he hadn't been prepared. Usually he was, so it surprised the rest of his family to find this strange girl who obviously knew one of their members when he'd told them nothing of her… or her mother.

His personal cell ringing when everyone was home was also a problem, because that meant one of two people was calling and he wished to hear from neither of them, considering the amount of trouble he was already in.

"Why'd you only call when you need stuff?"

"Fuck you, Whitlock! I don't need your charity." The girl on the other end of the line scowls. "I'm guessing you didn't know she was coming either?"

"Just showed up in the middle of the fricken' school year and blended right the fuck in, aside from being half a year late, but then she goes and gets an attitude because she expected forever and we didn't give her that."

"Sounds like your kid to me." Leah snorted. "I'm stuck on the Rez, remember? These poor assholes are so fucking entitled it's not even funny. Remind me again why I can't smack some sense into them?"

"According to you? You wanted to stay in one place for a while." Jasper smirked.

"Stop laughing, you little shit! I can't believe I thought this would work!" The girl groaned.

"You can't make me."

She made a sound that was barely distinguishable.

"For the love of God, will you all shut the hell up?! I'm talking here!" She snarled to whoever was in the room. Jasper yelped and jerked the phone away from his ear.

"Well damn, she-wolf! Good to know you still scream like a girl."

"I am a lady, asshole. I just happen to turn into a giant wolf. Tell her I'm leaving tonight, will you? That's what I originally called for. I can't take this place, Whitlock, and nothing you say is changing my mind."

"Can you at least wait until tomorrow? She's gonna be pissed if she doesn't get to see you."

"Unless I'm suddenly allowed on Cullen territory, hell no."

"She doesn't actually need us anyhow. Besides, it's not like she knows you were here." Jasper sneered.

"I hate your entire life." Leah groused.

"Love you too, sweetness. And I expect you to actually pick up the phone when I call or I'll send the kid."

"You better fucking not!" The she-wolf growled. "Please watch out for her, Jasper. She's not going to appreciate it but she can't actually protect herself and the last thing I need-."

"Breathe, she-wolf. What makes you think I wouldn't?"

"Thanks. I've got to finish packing the rest of my stuff. I'll call you later."

He said goodbye and hung up the phone.

"What just happened? Who was that?!"

"That, my dear, was the most amicable fake-divorce in history. Leah Clearwater is an acquaintance of mine who's most recent project is a girl named Isabella Marie Swan. I happened to walk in and get rid of the creeper outside the girl's room and five seconds later the girl thinks we're supposed to be her parents. Not that I mind. She's brilliant, but under the delusion that we've taken the place of her true parents."

_**BELLA**_

I found out the easy way that the Cullens didn't live too far away, on the other side of the forest, to be exact, and that was definitely something I could handle. I loved nature. At any rate, Jasper found me trudging through the leaves and I was on his back in an instant. He was pissed, I could tell, but apparently we would get to that later.

The first one I see is Alice, who I later learn is his wife. She greets him at the door with her spiky hair and constant energy. It's a wonder he can keep up. He probably just sits back and listens like he did when one of us needed to talk. He was good at that.

A brunette with a heart-shaped face appears shortly after and I come to learn that this is Esme. Esme is everything I ever dreamed of when I was younger, before I met Leah and Jasper.

"Can you be my mother?" I blurted out at one point. Jasper made it a point to exhale in a very loud sigh and rub the side of his head with one of his hands. Esme took my question in stride and assured me that yes, she could be. After that was Carlisle, and I could see where Jasper had adopted his "keep calm" attitude because that was something he wasn't very good at when I was younger. Next came Emmett and Rosalie. Emmett seemed excited to meet me but Rosalie was the exact opposite.

"Where's Copper?" I asked when a significant amount of time had passed.

"Who?" Emmett asked. I rolled my eyes.

"Red-brown hair, yellow eyes, really moody? Seen him?"

"Oh, you're talking about Edward? Wait until he hears that!" The oversized bear of a man snorted. Jasper muttered something under his breath and I snickered.

"You know you love me,"

"I wonder why." The curly blonde man I called my father mock-glared but I just stuck my tongue out.

"Where did I go wrong with you?" He grunted.

"And you say she's not your kid." Carlisle snorted.

"She definitely wasn't supposed to be," He groused. "Stupid Renee had zero parenting skills so Leah and I ended up with the slack… I feel bad for Charlie. All that time fawning over Renee and now he's stuck with a kid he barely knows because that bitch had no idea what she's doing."

"Jasper!" Esme reprimanded her son but he shook his head.

"Bella,"

"Do as I say, not as I do." I groused.

"Good girl," He muttered.

A loud howl echoed through the forest and panic flashed through his eyes.

* * *

"Where're we going?" I asked. At this point, I was more curious than scared. I remember the first (and only) time he'd gotten mad like that, and that was when the three of us first met.

"No idea." He shot back. "Take to the trees." He ordered. I climbed the nearest trunk and hopped from branch to branch, glad for the sturdiness of pines and the natural entanglement of forests.

We came to the edge of a small clearing currently occupied by ourselves and three wolves. One was the silver-grey wolf I'd come to love, and the other two I didn't know. I crawled down from the tree and went to stand by Jasper.

"Now what?" I whispered. He shook his head. _**Wait**_, he meant. I hate waiting when it comes to times like this.

Leah had her back to us, which meant that the two hostile wolves were facing us. They were currently in a standoff, the likes of which Jasper and I would hear the results of when someone (probably Leah) shifted back. The giant she-wolf turned her back on the two males and started for us. Only it wasn't us she was headed for, I realized. She grabbed the straps of her bag from a low-hanging branch and stopped a few feet behind Jasper and I. A flash of heat and the rustle of fabric told me that she was human again. Jasper raised an eyebrow and Leah shook her head.

_Not now_, I translated.

The two wolves were replaced with two large, bulky men with dark-tanned skin and darker eyes. They both wore cutoff shorts and nothing else, which made sense considering that they probably had to carry their clothes with them.

"Why are you so intent on protecting them? They don't need you and they damn sure don't want you around. You haven't even imprinted and you probably never will, just so you know; there's no reason for you to be there." The shorter of the two was ranting and the taller, older one was visibly shaking, obviously fuming as he glared at the younger boy. Good to know I wasn't the only one who thought the boy was being stupid.

"Let's go, Jacob." The older one growled out, still shaking. He turned and stalked off into the forest, leaving a sullen Jacob to glare at us and mutter unintelligible insults. I rolled my eyes.

"You should follow the leader." I offered. He let out another growl and started for me but stalked off when a wolf howled. Apparently Sam hadn't made it very far.

Jasper tilted his head, probably waiting for the wolves to be out of range before he moved, placing one hand on her shoulder and using the other to tilt her head up, forcing her to look at him.

"You'll always be worth something to me." He murmured.

"Thanks." She muttered back before wrapping me in a warm hug. I didn't bother to mention the tears that ran down her face. Jasper shifted after we spent a few minutes like that.

"You know how to find us. I'll let you know what changes."

"I'll call if I need you." She assured him. "Not like you would have it any other way."

I left before anything else happened.

* * *

The Cullens were quite surprised when I jumped down from the lowest of the branches to land into a roll, bending my limbs to lessen the impact like Jaser taught me. I was nowhere near as fast as a vampire, but trees were my forte.

"How are you alive?" Rosalie asked. I rolled my eyes and tried my best not to slam the door. This wasn't my property and I couldn't afford to pay for what I broke. Jasper wasn't far behind, but he still had to open the door.

"What have I told you about jumping from that high?"

"Why'd you let her leave?" I demanded.

"Would you rather she be miserable?"

"You could have helped her."

"I know what you had in mind, but that's not up to me. Everyone would have had to agree with it and you know they wouldn't have. This place wasn't doing any favors, so why bother staying?"

"I guess." I scowled. "You're not leaving anytime soon, are you?"

"I'll stay long enough to finish school, if that's what you're asking. You don't need us here."

"Doesn't mean I want you to leave every chance you get."

"Look at the bright side: Leah actually told you she was leaving."

"True," I mused. "It's still not fair."

"Life's not fair, Ringtail. That's the point of living."

"That makes _no_ sense at all!." I snapped. His riddles got annoying sometimes.

"If life were fair then there would be nothing worth living for."

"Is this one of those phili-psycho talks of yours?"

"It's a fact of life. Think about it." I did.

"Life's not fair, but if it were Renee and Charlie would have gotten along, which means that I would have never met you or Leah, but then on the other hand I would have a better time of things. But then where does that leave you and Leah? Either way you'd still be with the Cullens and she'd still find her own way. What would be the point?"

"Exactly."

"Do you have to be so cryptic, Dad?"

"Yes, Ringtail. How else will you learn to think?"

"I get the sense that the answer I want to give you is not what you want to hear."  
"By all means, kid."

"We learn stuff at school."

"The only good thing about school is that it gives you insight to other people."

"Philosophy?"

"Basic psychology."

"In what world?!"

"You have to know what to look for."

"Empathy doesn't give you all the answers." I objected. "Neither does telepathy or precognition or even plain old perception."

"They're all parts of a whole."

"Even that doesn't help. You can have all of those and not completely know a person because what other people see only goes so far, awesome powers or not."

"Now take that and apply it to Leah."

I thought about it.

"It's obvious she was miserable," I mused. "And she's been hinting at leaving long before I came, hasn't she? You don't need powers to know that. That's just snooping now... Is the reason she's miserable because she hasn't found what she was looking for?"

Jasper looked perturbed.

"It depends on what you think she's looking for."

"That Jacob boy called it an imprint. Is like those stories she told us in Phoenix?"

"You think she's looking for love? Seems like there's more to it."

"I think she's looking for peace." I corrected. "She was unhappy and the only reason she waited so long was because she wanted to make sure she had all her priorities straight before she left-."

"Which evidently included you."

"What?"

"You're half the reason she stayed in the first place."

"Oh… I didn't think of that. Anyway, she got all her priorities straight and now there's nothing holding her back. She's looking for something to chase out the bad. She wants to be happy, and that doesn't have to mean she imprints."

"Sounds like you've got it about right."

"I still want her to come back." I grumbled.

"Let her find what she's looking for first." Jasper offered. "Guarantee she'll come back and tell us all about it."

"Some people never find what they're looking for."

"Life is not a fairy tale and love is not some victory march. If she finds it then kudos to her. If not then you can only hope the replacement is enough to be content by."

"Your riddles are strange, Dad."

"They're riddles, Ringtail. What did you expect? Are you hungry?"

"I ate lunch." I offered promptly.

"Not what I asked."

"Kinda." My stomach betrayed me.

"You did not eat lunch." Jasper informed me. "You should know better than to lie to me, Isabella."

And… he full-named me. Not mad, but getting there.  
"I'll eat when I get home."

"I'm going to feed you either way." Jasper snorted.

"I can cook for myself!" I groused.

"Not the point, Bells."

Less angry than he was disappointed.

He made enchiladas with creamed spinach and macaroni and cheese as sides, knowing I would eat every bite.

"Where does all that food go, kid?" The big one, Emmett, wondered aloud as I, much to Jasper's chagrin, inhaled my food like there was no tomorrow.

"I'm almost positive at least one of the four parents you claim to have has taught you better than that." He scowled.

"Can you blame me? You haven't made this in years!"

"I haven't seen you since you were six." He deadpanned.

"Exactly!" I exclaimed. "Renee's not my mother. " I added as an afterthought.

"Are you saying that because you actually remember her or because I hate her?"

"Pick one." I offered.

"You can't hate people because other people hate them."

"Everyone does it somehow." I countered.

"That doesn't make it right. Leah's had to have taught you better than that."

"Leah's half the reason-."

"Finish that sentence, I dare you." Jasper sneered. "Leah has done nothing but teach you how to live your life where others have failed. Parents or not, you will respect that!"

"Yes, sir." I scowled, finishing up my snack.

"Is there anything else you wanted to whine about or can I take you home?"

"What was the point of sticking around if you both planned on leaving anyhow?"

"People come and go, Ringtail. Most of the time there's nothing you can do about it. It's not my fault your mother could barely take care of herself and it wasn't Leah's job to baby you. That was a choice she made and the only reason I stuck around was to keep you safe, not play house."

"And yet here you've been doing the exact same thing." I snorted. _Hypocrite. _

"That was not my job."

"Still haven't told me why you bothered."

"That's for me to know, Ringtail. What have I told you about secrets?"

"Everyone has them and they're not meant to be found out. You never said anything about lying, though, and last I figured those usually end up being the same." Jasper rolled his eyes.

"Go home, then. You obviously know I'm here, so mission accomplished. Why are you still here?" Jasper snapped, clearly done with the conversation. I sure wasn't.

"Hasn't anyone taught you to finish what you start?"


End file.
